Brett Duke/The Times-PicayuneJefferson Parish school teachers stage a protest Wednesday night over the School Board's refusal to extend their contract.

They booed and shouted "shame on you" and "we won't forget" as board member Michael Delesdernier walked to his car, closely accompanied by school system officials and a Jefferson Parish sheriff's deputy. Some members of the crowd chased his car shouting at him as he drove slowly across the parking lot.

The crowd also gathered around the vehicle of board President Mark Jacobs as he drove out, followed by Acting Superintendent James Meza in his car, with system officials and deputies helping clear the way so they could leave.

The protesters cheered and applauded the three board members - Cedric Floyd, Etta Licciardi and Ray St. Pierre - who voted in the minority for keeping some parts of the existing union contract, as they emerged from the building after 9 p.m.

The ferocity of the protest, which lasted throughout the meeting, was unprecedented in the recent history of the Jefferson Parish School Board.

A proposal by Jacobs to completely reboot the contract with the Jefferson Federation of Teachers is what stoked the teachers into protest. He argued for starting over because new state laws and local policies render large parts of the contract obsolete and a new document needs to be reshaped to reflect current conditions, replacing one that developed with amendments and adjustments over many years.

The contract expires at the end of the month. Jacobs and other officials said the lapse will not interrupt pay and benefits for teachers as school and union officials negotiate a new deal. And Jacobs and Meza said they intend to cooperate with the union in negotiating a fresh arrangement.

Teachers, union officials and other supporters, however, said they interpreted the move by the board as thinly veiled tactic to break the union and devalue teachers.

After the vote, Federation President Meladie Munch stood in the center of the crowd outside, megaphone in hand, urging the protesters to wait out the meeting and face board members when they left.

Protesters crowd the Jefferson Parish School Board meetingProtesters against the Jefferson Parish School Board's decision to scrap all of the previous teachers union contract and start a new jeered some board members as they left the meeting Wednesday, chanting "shame on you," and "we won't forget." Board members that voted against the plan were cheered on.